Station-indicator



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3 sheets-sheet 2. P. MOORE. STATION INDICATOR.

No. 448,982. Patented Mam.l 24, 1891.

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WITNESSES:

` a sheetssheet 3. F. MOORE. STATIN INDICATOR.

Patented Mar. 24, 1891. FlG.

huid-pressure supply on the locomotive, a

UNTTED STATES PATENT nnicni.

FRANK :MOORE OF PITTSBURG, IjENNSYIIANIA.

'STATION-INDICATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 448,982, dated March 24, 1891.

Application filed May 16, 1890.

Serial No. 352,009. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom t may concern,.-

Be it known that I, FRANK MOORE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pittsburg, in the countyof Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented or discovered a certain new and useful Improvement in Station-Indicators for Railroad-Cars, of which improvement the following is a specification.

The object of myinvention is to provide means whereby the naines of the several sta'- tions at which stops will be made by a train may be severally and successively displayed within the cars, so as to be visible to the passengers therein shortly before the train reaches the respective stations or stopping- -places, by the engineer or fireman of the locomotive hauling the train.

To this end my invention, generally stated, consists in a line of pneumatic train-signaling pipe extending through the car or cars on which the station-indications are to be given and communicating with a source of valve mechanism on each car connected with said line of pipe, an actuating-cock on the l0- comotive controlling the admission of fluid under pressure to said line, a piston working in a cylinderl connected with said line, and a stationindicating device actuated by said piston.

The improvement claimed is hereinafter fully set forth. g

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a side view in elevation of a portion of a railroad-train illustrating an indicating mechanism embodying my invention applied in connection with a special line of pipe; Fig. 2, a similar view showing the saine applied in connection with. a fluid-pressure train-signaling line; Fig. 8, a front view in elevation of the indicating mechanism; Fig. 4, a vertical section at the line a; @c of Fig. 3; Fig. 5, a section through the actuating-valve; and Fig. 6 a View, partly 'in section, of a portion of one end of the upper roller of the indicating mechanisms.

In the practice of my invention I provide a line of pressure-supply pipe 2, leadingfrom a source of fluid-pressure on the locomotive, as the main air-reservoir lof the air-brake apparatus, and extending therefrom through- Out the train or the cars thereof in which station-indications are desired to be made by sections supported under the floor of the tender and of the several cars and connected by suitable couplings. The admission of air to the supply-pipe 2 from the reservoir is controlled by a valve 3, which is normally closed by a spring 4, and is provided with a handle 5, by which it is opened to actuate the indicating mechanism in the cars at the proper periods by the engineer. The supply-pipe may either be a line specially provided for the purpose, as shown in Fig. l, or where a fluid-pressure train-signaling apparatus is employed, as is now the case to a large extent in railroad practice, the signaling-line of such apparatus may be utilized as the supply-pipe of the station-indicating mechanism Without interference with or detriment to the performance of its ordinary and normal function. In such case the actuating-valve 3 is tted in a supplemental direct air-supply pipe 6, leading from the main reservoir to a point in the signaling-line 2 beyond the signalingvalve 7, as shown in Fig. 2.

The indicatingl mechanism is located in such position in each car in which it is applied that its indications maybe plainly visible to all the passengers therein,and it being' the practice to reverse the seat-backs, so that the passengers face oppositely in the opposite directions of movement of the car, two

indicating mechanisms, similar in construction, which will be presently described, are preferably employed, one being attached to each of the end walls of the car.

Each indicating mechanism embodies a pair of rollers 8 and 9, which are journaled one above the other on a supporting-plate 10, fixed to one end of the car at a suitable distance above the oor, and a web or sheet of paper, clot-h, or other exible material ll is connected at opposite ends to and wound upon the rollers, so as to be adapted to be rolled up on one and unrolled from the other in their rotation. rlhe names or indications of the stations at which stops are to 'be made are marked in large and plain characters upon the web 1l, which, together with the rollers S and i), is covered by a light casing l2, having a transverse opening 13 of proper dimensions to eX- pose to view one, and only one, of the series of names marked upon the web as said station IOO naines or indications are successively brought beneath the opening in and by the rotation of the rollers. Each of the rollers is provided at one end with a journal 14, mounted in a bearing 15, fixed to the base-plate, and has fixed centrally to its opposite end a journal l7, adapted to rotate. freely in a cylindrical bearing 1S, which is fitted to move longitudinally in a stand 1i), fixed to the supportingplate lO, but is held as against movement about its axis by a pin 20, passing through a longitudinal slot 2l in the bearing 1S and into the stand 19. A ratchet-wheel 22 is secured upon the journal 17 of each of the rollers S and 9, the inclination of the teeth ot the ratchet-wheels being in opposite directions, respectively, upon the two rollers.

A collai' 23 is fixed upon the inner end of each ofthe bearings 18, and a sheave 24, which bears against said collar, is fitted to turn upon the bearing through such range of motion as is permitted by a spiral spring 25, the outer end of which is connected to the sheave near its periphery and the inner end to the bearing. rlhe springs oi' the sheaves of the upper and lower bearings are coiled in opposite directions, respectively, the relation of each spring to the ratchet-wheel of the adjacent roller being such that the engagement of a pawl pivoted to a fixed support with either of the teeth of said ratchet-wheel would act to prevent rotation of the sheave in the direction due to the tension ot the spring. A pawl 2G is pivoted to the periphery of each of the sheaves 24, one of said pawls being normally (that is, during the periods between the changes of the stationindications) held in engagement with a tooth of the adjacent ratchet-wheel 22 by a spring 27. A cord 28 is secured at one of its ends to the periphery of one of the sheaves 24, and after passing partially around the same is connected at its opposite end to the free end of a lever 29, which is pivoted to the supporting-plate 10 and is moved about its pivot by the application of fluid-pressure from the supply-line to exert draft upon the cord 2S and eect a partial rotation of the connected slieave 24 and the adjacent ratchet-wheel and web-carrying roller in direction opposite to that induced by the tension of the spring 25 whenever an indication of the station at which the train will make the next stop is to be given. The traverse of the lever 29 is such that the sheave and roller will be moved the. proper distance to bring the portion of the web ll on which is marked the indication of the station which is to be displayed immediately before the opening 13 of the casing, and as soon as this has been done the pressure acting upon the lever 29 is released, whereupon the tension of the spring 25 turns the sheave 24 in the opposite direction without moving the ratchet-wheel and roller, thereby returning the lever 29 to normal position and moving the pawl 2G into engagement with another tooth of the ratchetwheel in readiness for the saine and the connected roller to be again moved forward for the display of the next station-indication as soon as required.

It will be seen that when the cord 2Sis coniiected to the sheave of the upper roller 3, as shown in Fig. 3 and in full lines in Fig. 4, the movement of the web, on which the signalindications are marked, will be in the direction of the arrows, and in order to admit of such movement it is necessary 'or the pawl of the sheave of the lower roller E) to be released from engagement with the ratchetwheel thereof, such release being eiected by sliding the cylindrical bearing lSof the lower roller in its stand 19 a suticient distance to withdraw the pawl from the ratchet-wheel, when no resistance will be opposed to the par tial rotation of the upper roller and the resultant movement of the web by the lever 29, as above described. Upon the return-trip of the train it is of course necessary that the station-indications should be displayed in reverse order, and consequently that the web on which they are marked should moved in the opposite direction, and for this purpose the cord 28 is connected to the slicave of the lower roller 9, as shown in dotted lines 1n Fig. 4. The pawl of the sheave of said roller is engaged with the ratchet-wlieel thereof .by the inward movement of the lower cylindrical bearing 18, and the pawl of the sheave of the upper roller is disengaged from the adjacent ratchet wheel by corresponding outward movement of the upper cylindrical bearing. The traverse of the web is then eitected .in the same manner as above described, but in opposite direction by the transmission ot' power from the lever 29 to the lower roller through the adjacent sheave, spring, pawl, and ratchetwheel.

The movements of thelever29, by which the rollers and the web on which the station-indications are marked are moved, as from time to time required to successively display the several station-indications, are eitected by the admission of fluid under pressure from the main reservoir l to the supply-line 2 by means of the valve 3, which is actuated by the engineer or fireman of the locomotive at the proper periods, the accession of fluid-pressure in the supply-line moving a piston, which in turn acts upon the lever 29. For this purposea branch pipe 3() is led from the supply-line to a valve mechanism connected to the supporting-plate l0 of the indicating mechanism and consisting ot' a casing 3l, in which is fitted a movable abutment 32, preferably in the form of a fiexible diaphragm, as shown, said abutment being subject on one side to pressure from the supply-line and branch pipe 30 and on the other to the tension in opposite direction of a spring 33. A supply-valve 34, formed or fixed on the end of a stem secured to the abutment 32, controls a port 35, leading from the casing 31. on the supply side of the abutment to a cylinder 36, in which is fitted a piston 37, having a stem 38, the outer lio end of which abuts against the lever 29. An open port 39 is formedl in the outer end of the cylinder 3G to prevent compression of air therein in the outward movement of the piston. The tension of the spring 33 is such as to normally hold the valve Sat seated upon the port 35, and thereby to prevent the access 0f pressure to the cylinder. Upon increase of pressure in the supply-line by the opening of the actuating-valve 3 such pressure overcomes the tension of the spring 33 and moves the abutment 32 to the right, unseating the supply-valve 3i and admitting pressure to the cylinder 36, by which an outward traverse of its piston 37 and of the lever 29 is effected, such traverse of the lever 29 moving the rollers and web and displaying a vstation-indication, as before described. At the termination of the stroke of the piston and lever the actuating-fluid is exhausted from the cylinder through a port 40 and the lever and piston are returned to normal position by the action of the spring 25 on the lever through the cord 28, the spring coincidently moving the abutment 32 to the left and seating the supply-valve. The exhaustport 40 may, as shown, leadto a whistle 4l or other audible signaling device which is actuated by the exhaust from the cylinder, in order that the attention of the passengers f may be drawn to the change of station-indications which is made.

In lieu of providing a separatevalve mechanism for the pressnre-cylinderof each of the indicating mechanisms of a car, as above described, a single intermediate valve mechanism connected by a branch pipe with the supply-line may be employed and similarly operated to admit pressure to the cylinders of both the indicating mechanisms, the supplyvalve in such case controlling a port leading into a chamber from which pipes extend to Vthe signaling-line, and an actuating-valve on the locomotive controlling said direct airsupply pipe, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of a pair of carryingrollers, a Web of flexible material connected at its ends thereto and bearing a series of station-ind ications, ratchet-wheels connected to the rollers and provided with oppositely-inclined teeth, respectively, longitudinallymovable bearings, each supporting an end journal of one of the rollers, sheaves mounted loosely on said bearings and connected there'- to by oppositely-coiled springs, respectively, pawls pivoted to said sheaves and adapted to be engaged with and disengaged from the teeth of the adjacent ratchet-wheels, a fluidpressure cylinder, a valve controlling the inlet-port thereof, a piston fitting said cylinder, a pivoted ylever abuttingagainst the stem of said piston, and a flexible connection coupling the free end of thellever with one of said sheaves, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set y my hand.

FRANK MOORE. Witnesses:

J. SNOWDEN BELL, R. H. WHITTLESEY. 

